The Home Stone

The three canoes stayed within a few feet of each other, with Brendan and Shannon in the lead and the other two, right behind. It was dark by the time they reached the shore, with the only light coming from stars, for the moon had not risen yet. The weather in the straits was calm and clear. The rain had not reached there, but it would not be long before the skies would darken further, shutting out any light for stars and the moon. Brendan wanted to be more inland before that happened. They continued to paddle until they came to the mouth of a river. From here they would travel inland until they reached the base of the mountains. Then they could hide the boats and continue on foot, but for now they needed to find a place to hide and take cover as the rain began. They continued for a short time, until the rain soaked them to the skin. Shannon and Kirin both saw a possible landing sight at the same time. Most of the shore was rough and rocky with banks rising about three to four feet above the surface of the water. Here they found a small beach area, which allowed them to pull their rain filled canoes ashore.

The trees here were not large enough here on the shore to protect the five friends from the down pour, so they turned over the small boats and huddled under them until the rain let up enough to allow the group to continue. Here on the river they were too exposed from anyone that happened along, hence the decision was made to travel all night with hopes of finding better concealment in the morning. The twisting river was at its deepest in the center and made steering in the dark more difficult. Traveling closer to the shore on both sides could ground them on the sandy shoals that made up the river bottom.

By early morning just before sunrise the three canoes found the perfect spot. Large trees to hunker under if needed, a fifty-foot cliff at their backs and enough brush around to hide the boats and themselves to avoid being discovered. Not wanting to start a fire they ate their meal cold, besides there was not any dry tinder around due to last night’s rain. Again, they donned their waterproof cloaks and settled down on the wet forest floor and fell asleep.

As the sunset and in the failing light the five were back on the river. Here it narrowed and became so shallow that at times the party had to disembark from the canoes and pull their crafts over one of the many sand shoals that suddenly appeared in the center of the river. The water was lower than anyone had expected. They kept this up until the morning of the third day, when they finally reached the end of the deeper water and could go on no further. From here they would have to travel on foot to the base of the mountains. Hiding the canoes in the bushes nearby, they collected their gear and with Brendan in the lead they marched off into the forest. Here Galvin remained to protect the boats.

Brendan warned them to keep silent, as there would be many patrols about. Some of them dwarf patrols and some of them Valcorans. In any case, they would not want to meet any of them. They marched on until Brendan signaled to stop. In a whisper he said, “There’s a patrol on the road just a few yards ahead. We’ll wait here till they move on. Not a sound please.”

They waited until the group moved on and then dared a crossing to the other side and back into the forest. Brendan knew this part of the island well, but became confused when they party started searching for the entrance to the tunnel that would lead the to the other side and to the village of Valcore.

“I know it’s here somewhere,” he whispered, “but everything is so overgrown since I was here the last time that nothing looks familiar to me.”

“Take your time,” whispered Shannon as she closed in on him so no one else would hear. “It’ll all come back to you soon. Look for anything that looks remotely familiar and we will check it out.”

They spent most of the day searching for the entrance and by early evening Brendan turned towards the group with a smile on his face. Everyone knew at once that he had found the tunnel entrance. A decision was made not to enter until it was completely dark, because then their eyes would be accustomed to the dark and would make seeing in the tunnel easier. No torches would be lit, so those of the race of man had to rely on the keen sight of the elves leading the party. Shannon in the lead with Brendan then came Kirin, Ashley and Fredrick following close behind.

Just inside the entrance, Brendan grabbed Shannon’s arm and pulled her about.

“One thing I forgot to mention,” he whispered, as the rest almost bumped into the leaders. “These tunnels are the home of the Grays. If we run into any of them we’ll have a good fight on our hands. So we must keep as quiet as possible for they can see as well as you and know these passages better than me. Also, there are goblins here in these tunnels, so keep a sharp ear out for them. They move almost silently and stay in spots where they can ambush the unexpecting.”

Weapons were drawn and they party continued without making a sound. Just inside the party walked by alcoves chiseled into the rock where one could hide or ambush anyone passing by. Some were small enough to for a man to hide and others were the size of small rooms where a group of men could not be seen from the main tunnel. A little farther down the passage they passed another tunnel running off to the left. Peering in as far as the eye could see in this darkness it was decided that all was clear so they continued. They had not gotten very far past the side tunnel when a swish was heard. Seconds later Fredrick grunted. Immediately the party knew that they were under attack. Turning, Ashley let loose a dart from her pistol crossbow. As did Fredrick, who was now down on his knees. Both darts hit their targets and two grays went down. Grabbing their fallen comrade, the party rushed down the tunnel until they came to another side passage. Kirin motioned that he was going to check this new tunnel and see if it was truly clear. In the meantime, the rest of the party tried to help their friend. The wound was deep and seemed to have punctured his right lung. Shannon did what she could, but by the time Kirin came back the wounded elf was coughing up blood. Shannon knew that it would only been a matter of time. Explaining that the side tunnel met up with the main passage back where the attack took place, Kirin told them that he had hidden the bodies farther up the side tunnel so they would not be seen right away.

“We have to move fast to get away from here and further up the tunnel before the dwarfs discover their friends,” said Kirin in a low voice. “They might think that someone else, such a patrol of goblins, killed them the battle. If that’s so, then we might stand a chance and get to the other end without further incident.”

They all agreed and continued. Helping Fredrick to his feet, Kirin supported the wounded elf as they continued in the tunnel. Every time they found a side passage they stopped and checked to make sure that there was no danger hidden farther back in the darkness. The main tunnel continued to twist and turn as they passed. They passed many more alcoves and side tunnels when Brendan became very agitated. The five stopped.

“What’s wrong,” Shannon whispered.

“I remember this way,” the rogue answered. “This left passage leads to the garrison of the Grays. We are about to pass the most dangerous part of our journey. At any time, we can run into a patrol of dwarfs. To the left is the garrison and to the right just up the passage is the entrance to their village. Let’s hope that we don’t run into any more of them before we are out of this place.”

The three others agreed and continued as quietly as they could and passed the entrance to the village and were a good mile into the tunnel when an alarm was heard. Quickly they ran down the tunnel until they came to a passage on their left. They entered carrying Fredrick as far as they dared. Shannon then cast a spell that turned the party invisible to anyone looking into the place of hiding and told everyone to stand very still. Now the young mage tended to the elf’s wound and began to try to stem the flow of blood. It was clear that he would not last much longer and they could not carry him and run from the grays at the same time. It was decided to stay here in the relative safety of the passage that was protected by Shannon’s spell. As long as no one else came down the corridor, they would remain unseen.

Nobody knew if it was day or night, but a few hours later Fredrick succumbed to his wound. Not wanting to leave his body lying just out in the open passage, the friends carried him farther down the tunnel. A short time later they came to an opening and stepped in. The ground here was loose and soft. It was a good place to dig a hole and bury the dead elf, so no one would find him. The four moved to the center of the chamber where the ground was the softest and began to dig. Suddenly the ground gave way and the four plus Fredrick fell through and down almost fifteen to twenty feet.